A passenger boarding bridge is used for many purposes, such as connecting a ship or plane to a terminal. Many passenger boarding bridges in the shipping industry extend from the terminal and end with a cab near the ship, leaving a small distance between the cab and the ship. In a conventional application, this distance is spanned with a gangplank that engages with both the cab and the ship.
Although the cab may be maintained in a fixed position since the bridge is generally connected to a fixed platform, such as a dock, the ship is subject to movement with changing tides. The ship often moves in all three directions--up and down, forward and backward, and from side to side. If the movement is too extreme, the gangway could disengage from the cab or the ship, severing the connection, or alternatively, the ship could collide with the bridge. Either case could result in damage to the ship and bridge or harm to passengers.
Movement of the ship also affects the inclination of the gangway. When the ship rises or falls with the tides or moves toward or away from the cab, the inclination of the gangway will change. If ship movement is too extreme, the inclination of the gangway will become unacceptable, requiring adjustment of the cab elevation.
In the past, avoidance of collisions between the ship and the bridge, disengagement of the gangway from the ship or cab, and unacceptable slopes for the gangway, has required labor intensive monitoring of the gangway and adjustment of the cab position by the bridge operator. Therefore, a need has arisen for a new method and apparatus for connecting a passenger boarding bridge to a movable body that overcomes the disadvantages and deficiencies of the prior art.